


love cherry motion

by ohwines



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Little Mermaid Elements, M/M, Multi, caspar owns a hotdog stand, everyone shows up eventually!, human caspar, merman linhardt, will add ships as i go but it's mainly casphardt, will also tag as i go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-04-03
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:40:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22551151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohwines/pseuds/ohwines
Summary: Caspar feels his heart get stuck in his throat. “Please don’t disappear for another 15 years,” he finds himself saying without his permission.“You’re the one who disappeared,” Linhardt responds, which. Fair.“Can I see you again?” Caspar asks.Human Caspar is rescued by merman Linhardt.ON HIATUS
Relationships: Caspar von Bergliez/Linhardt von Hevring, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/My Unit | Byleth, Felix Hugo Fraldarius/Sylvain Jose Gautier
Comments: 20
Kudos: 46





	1. started so suddenly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this fic literally wouldn't exist without my dear friend [lys](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hanabi/pseuds/hanabi) whom i love very much. please read her fic and love her as much as i do. if anything in this story is funny and makes you laugh it's because of her
> 
> title is from love cherry motion by loona’s choerry, and all the chapter titles will be pulled from the lyrics
> 
> linhardt says stan loona

When Caspar is seven, he nearly drowns. It’s his first time at the beach and no one has ever warned him about currents. Not that he would have listened; Caspar von Bergliez isn’t afraid of anything, especially not some silly water. But when the currents pull him away, he fights and he struggles and dooms himself further. Then suddenly, cold hands drag him up and up and he’s breaking the surface. He looks around for his rescuer, coughing and spluttering and hacking up water. He sees big blue eyes peeking above the waves, dark green hair nearly black from the water, and pointy ears. _Pretty_ , his seven year old mind supplies. Before he can speak, his mother is rushing into the water, scooping him up into her arms and squeezing him so tightly he almost stops breathing a second time. 

By the time he gets out of her grasp, his rescuer is gone with a splash of a dark green tail.

* * *

When Linhardt is seven, he rescues a little boy with no fins for swimming. No, he’s got _legs_. Linhardt has learned about those from the texts his father tries to hide from him. But Linhardt is smart and he finds the texts and he reads about humans. He reads about things that go far over his seven year old head and asks way too many questions that will send his poor suffering father to an early grave. 

He rescues a little boy with no fins and hair a bright shade of blue, but he can’t tell anyone about him. Not even his twin sister Flayn. She might go running to their dad and Linhardt would be in a lot of trouble. So he keeps his little blue boy to himself for as long as he can stand it. After a decade, it gets easier.

* * *

**10 years later**

It’s been ten years and Caspar is 17. He’s not much bigger than he was the last time he was at this beach; he’s convinced he hasn’t finished growing yet, no matter how much his brother teases him.

He’s come to this beach for a reason, you see. Ten years ago, Caspar nearly drowned on the very shores of this beach. It’s one of his most vivid memories from childhood. He remembers the panic, choking, his mother squeezing him afterwards. But most of all he remembers big blue eyes and pointy ears. He remembers being saved by someone. Or some _thing_. But his family never believed him. They thought he was delirious from the near death experience. But how else could he have come up to the surface, stuck in the current like he was? No, he didn’t imagine anything. He was saved by a creature with big blue eyes, pointy ears, and a dark green tail. A mermaid. Merboy. Merperson? Caspar’s not fussed with the details, he just wants to see them again. To prove himself right. So, he drags his closest friend seven hours across the state on a post high school graduation beach trip.

“Caspar, wait up!” Ashe calls from behind him. He’s out of breath, gray hair in his eyes.

“No can do, my man!” Caspar says, still running for the shore.

Ashe is the only one who knows all about Caspar’s mysterious savior. 

“Did you see them?” he questions, still running a few paces behind Caspar. Ashe may be faster, but Caspar is more determined.

“No, but I still gotta try!” Caspar has made it to the shore. _Now what,_ he thinks.

“Now what?” Ashe asks, catching up. 

“Uh, we wait I guess.” So he plops himself down on his butt and waits.

And waits. Ashe leaves after a couple hours, but Caspar won’t budge.

Finally, when the sun goes down and he can’t ignore the growling in his stomach, he leaves.

“I’ll come back for you tomorrow!” he promises to the salty air.

And he does. Everyday for the next week until it’s time to go home and figure out what he’s gonna do for the rest of his life.

It’s their last night at the beach and his savior never makes an appearance.

* * *

“This human is most curious,” Flayn says. “He sits here day after day. It is as if he is waiting for something.”

“Yes, most curious,” Linhardt mutters. He would know that blue hair anywhere. He has not grown much over the years, not as much as Linhardt himself at any rate.

He feels his twin looking at him, can imagine the expression on her face and the question on the tip of her tongue.

“He is quite small,” she says instead. “I wonder how old he is.”

“He’s no smaller than you,” he responds. “I bet he’s more of a grownup than you are.”

  
She bristles. “Are you implying I am immature? I’ll have you know, I asked father to allow me to go fishing on my own just last week, and he only made me take Byleth with me.”

“I would never imply such a thing,” Linhardt says, biting back a snort. Of course their overbearing father sent their frankly terrifying cousin to watch over Flayn, and of course his sister thinks it’s an accomplishment.

He sees movement out of the corner of his eye. His blue boy is getting up and leaving. This is the fourth sundown in a row that he has sat on the beach. He only spoke the first day, brash and loud. He didn’t mean to bring Flayn along, but after three sunrises spent away from their pod, she became understandably curious. He had to pretend not to know anything about this human, but he knows his twin has him figured out. They’re older now and he thinks he can trust her not to accidentally reveal his secret to their father but still...he’s wary. Seteth doesn’t particularly like humans. He’s not hostile towards them, but he feels distrustful of them and doesn’t want his family anywhere near the surface. Linhardt will solve this mystery eventually, but today he’s more concerned with his blue bird.

“Say, Flayn. I’m getting sleepy. What do you say to heading back home? Don’t want dear old dad worrying.”

Flayn bites her lip. “You are right, brother. He may send Ferdie after us again, and we cannot have that.”

Linhardt shudders, thinking of their eager older brother. There was an earnest dogfish if he’d ever met one. 

“Let’s go,” he says, and swims away with a final glance at the small young man on the shore.

* * *

It’s officially their last morning here. He and Ashe have packed their bags and loaded them in Ashe’s old station wagon. Caspar can’t help himself but to run to the beach one more time, just in case. 

There’s nothing there at first, but then he hears a splash. He turns to the source of the sound but sees nothing but ripples. He moves closer to the water, heart in his throat. Suddenly, Ashe calls out from behind him, “hey! Time to go, Caspar!”

“Be right there, man!” he calls back, eyes staying trained on the same spot. The water stills and doesn’t move again. 

He turns around and leaves for the last time.

_That was close,_ thinks Linhardt. While he’s not so sure what it is he’s afraid of, he’s not quite ready to be discovered. He swims deeper and deeper into the water, back towards Zanado. He feels uncomfortably melancholy, but after all this time, he’s got a name to put to the face. _Caspar._


	2. love cherry magic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Well,” Caspar begins, standing up and walking along the edge of the rickety dock, “they’ve always been a myth. Big sea monsters who come up out of the ocean and devour ships and sailors. Like in The Odyssey, or Pirates of the Caribbean.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please look at the wonderful [fanart ](https://twitter.com/MercifulTits/status/1233884136928108547?s=20)my friend drew of this fic!

**five years later**

* * *

Caspar is freshly 22 and has sand in his ears and the smell of cooking oil on his skin and in his hair. He’s afraid he’s going to smell like hotdogs and sunscreen for the rest of his life and he’s only been peddling hotdogs on the beach for a week. He didn’t go to college, didn’t even bother with the SAT and though ‘hotdog cart man’ wasn’t his dream job as a child (that honor goes to ‘lumberjack’), he’s not too upset about how life has turned out.

In fact, life is pretty damn okay. His big brother took over the family business, and his grandpa, who he never really knew, passed away and left him his hoity-toity house on the beach. He has no mortgage, and the bills are taken care of by the estate. He’s renting a hotdog cart for the hell of it, peddling his fragrant wares on the beach where he nearly drowned.

If he’s hoping to see big blue eyes and green hair after all these years, well. That’s his own business.

So far, there’s been no luck but Caspar is nothing if not optimistic. 

This beach is small and quiet, never getting too crowded even in the summer. But he’s the only guy selling food, so he does okay. He survives off of his own hotdogs and cup ramen but he’s happy and that’s what really matters, after all.

Ashe has moved down to the beach with him, scouring the local Facebook marketplace and yard sale page for items worth a lot more than they’re being sold for and then reselling them with a high margin on eBay. Caspar thinks he’s kind of a genius. They’ve met some interesting people in their time here. There’s Sylvain, the tall and flirtatious surf instructor who’s really good with kids, and his husband Felix, who teaches karate at the rec center. They’re pretty cute and Caspar is only a little jealous that they’ve got their shit together so young. There’s Annette, who works at the rec center with Felix, giving voice lessons. She’s feisty and funny and Felix’s polar opposite, but they’re the best of friends.

Then there’s Edelgard, the daughter of the mayor. Caspar only knows this because this town is so small and he’s the only guy selling food on this tiny beach so he’s heard a lot about well, everyone. Then there’s Hubert, who might be her bodyguard but he also might be a dark web CIA operative (is that a thing? Caspar doesn’t know). He’s a little scary. 

“Hello. I would be liking to purchase two hotdogs, please.” He’s interrupted from his reverie by a girl with dark purple hair and a face tattoo. 

“Sure thing! How would you like them?” he asks, pulling out two dogs to put into buns. 

“Erm--cooked would be preferable?” the girl responds. He thinks she’s being an asshole, but the expression on her face and the accent in her voice makes him reconsider.

“No, I mean what do you want me to put on them?”

“Oh! I am sorry, I am not being from here,” she rushes to apologize. “I would like onions, mustard, and ketchup please.”

He waves her off good-naturedly and gets to work.

“So what brings you here?” he asks as he prepares her hot-dog.

“My name is Petra Macneary,” she begins with a small bow, “I am studying abroad from Brigid. I am being—no, I am _staying_ with the mayor’s family.”

Caspar whistles and points at himself. “Caspar von Bergliez. Fancy. So you know Edelgard and Hubert?”

“Yes, I am knowing them! My grandfather is being a diplomat from Brigid. He is knowing Edelgard’s father. They have—no, sorry, they arranged for me to be staying here.” He hands her the hotdogs. 

“Thank you,” she says through a bite of hot-dog. “Edelgard is delightful. Hubert tries very hard to be intimidating me.” 

“Yeah,” Caspar chuckles, hoping it’s convincing. He personally thinks Hubert is actually kind of terrifying but he doesn’t want this girl to know that. 

“Well, thank you for the hotdog. It was being—no, it _was_ delicious,” Petra says, waving as she walks away.

“Nice meeting you! Come again!” He yells after her. 

Caspar stands around for a few more hours, and sells two more hotdogs. It’s starting to get dark so he begins packing up the hotdog stand and hears a splash. It’s coming from the direction of one of the big rocks on the shore. Abandoning his cart, he walks towards the sound. He doesn’t see anything and is about to walk away when suddenly—

“Hello.”

“Ahh!” Caspar shrieks, clutching his chest. 

“I’m sorry, did I startle you?” says the smooth voice. Caspar squints, seeing a figure half shrouded by the rock. He moves closer, seeing a young man with big dark eyes and long dark hair.

“Of course not!” Caspar responds, hoping the stranger can’t see through the obvious lie. 

“If you say so.”

“What are you doing in the water? It’s gotta be cold by now.” 

“What do you mean? I live here,” responds the boy.

“Well yea so do I, just over the dunes,” Caspar says, pointing to the cottage with the robin’s egg blue roof. 

The stranger shakes his head. 

“No, I mean I live here. In the water,” he says, gesturing to the dark ocean. His arm makes Caspar pause. His hand is webbed and his arm has a fin at the elbow. 

Caspar can’t make out the color of his hair, but if he had to guess, he would say it’s dark green. He knows exactly who this is. Or he hopes he does, anyway. 

He moves closer to the rock, and the boy moves closer to the shore.

“It’s nice to meet you, finally,” the man, and Caspar can tell he’s a grown man now, probably his own age, says with a very small smile.

Caspar feels his own grin splitting his face in half as he sits down in the lapping waves at the shore. 

“Nice to officially meet you too! I’m Caspar. Caspar von Bergliez! Thanks for saving my life all those years ago.”

“I know your name. You can call me Linhardt. I do hope you have learned to swim by now,” his savior says, a small teasing smile on his pretty face. 

“You know, I could use some lessons,” Caspar responds with a grin, and realizes he’s flirting. He’s flirting? He hopes it works. Linhardt is really pretty.

“Oh?” Linhardt responds. “Well, I require at least three naps a day, but I suppose I could make time in my schedule for you.” He begins to float on his back, and his tail—his _tail_ —peeks out of the waves, gently splashing Caspar with water. 

“Three naps a day, huh? What do you do to get so tired?” Caspar asks, hoping he looks cute with his chin in his hand, sitting criss-cross applesauce in his soaking wet board shorts. 

“Other than monitoring you to make sure you don’t drown? I study a lot. My twin sister and I are healers, so we practice our magic together. Really wears me out,” Linhardt says through a yawn. 

“Magic? You have a twin?” Caspar begins, then—“what do you mean making sure I don’t drown? You’ve been watching me?”

Linhardt waves him off with an eye roll. “I occasionally swim up to the shore. It’s not my fault you’re always here.”

“I sell hotdogs here!”

“I don’t know what a ‘hotdog’ is. But yes, I can do magic,” Linhardt says, and a small blue light appears in his webbed palm. “I am not the best healer in the pod, that honor belongs to Mercedes. But I am decent enough.”

Caspar is taken aback by the magic at first, _but if merpeople exist, then why can’t magic_ , he thinks.

“I bet you’re the best healer in the ocean!”

Linhardt looks away and huffs out a laugh. “Hopefully I never have to demonstrate it for you.”

It becomes quiet after that, both of them sitting in silence.

“So….” Caspar starts. “Are you a merman?”

“Well, we use the term ‘nereid’ but yes, I suppose ‘merman’ works just fine.”

“What’s the difference?” 

Linhardt looks a little lost at the question. “Well. I don’t know the answer to that, I’m afraid. It’s just the term we have always used.”

He begins muttering to himself about further research and Caspar feels himself staring, knowing he’s being rude and weird but he just can’t help it. His savior in the flesh after 15 years, and he’s _gorgeous_. Caspar doesn’t know how to handle this knowledge. He kind of can’t believe he hasn’t made a total fool of himself yet. He suddenly wishes he had some wood to knock on.

Linhardt moves closer to the shore, closer to Caspar. He’s lying on his belly now, chin in his hands and his tail flopping out behind him. He splashes it against the shallow water once, twice, sprinkling Caspar a little both times. He doesn’t find that he minds. Up close, Caspar can get a better look at him. His hair has a couple of pretty shells woven in it, and he wears a necklace made of a light green stone with the shape of what looks like an unfinished heart carved into it. He’s so distracted by the pendant that he nearly misses the gills--the _gills_. They blend in with his skin and are barely visible but they’re there. In fact, Caspar can see a lot of Linhardt’s pale skin now, more than just his neck, and he has to fight off a blush. His torso is long and his shoulders are broad but he’s kind of lanky all around. He smells a little like salt and something else Caspar can’t place but it’s incredibly alluring. He wonders if it’s a nereid thing, or a Linhardt thing. He realizes Linhardt is looking at him just as intently and he does blush, this time.

“Humans are fascinating,” Linhardt says, poking Caspar’s warm cheek with his webbed finger. “Why do your ears look like this?”

“I don’t know. Why are yours pointy?” Caspar retorts.

“Hm. Both good questions,” Linhardt says, continuing his inspection. Caspar feels very put-on-the-spot, but he can’t say he minds the attention. 

Suddenly, his phone rings. The sound visibly startles Linhardt, who dives backwards and swims back towards his rock. 

“Wait!” Caspar calls after him desperately, “don’t leave just yet.”

To his credit, Linhardt stays still. Caspar sees it’s Ashe calling and answers.

“Hey man, what are we doing for dinner?” Ashe asks.

“I don’t know yet, probably just ramen again.”

“Boring. Sylvain and Felix invited us over to dinner at their place. I accepted.”

“Okay, let me finish packing up the cart and then I’ll shower and we’ll be on the way.”

“Sounds good,” Ashe responds, and thankfully hangs up. 

Caspar hadn’t taken his eyes off Linhardt the entire time. Linhardt slowly begins to swim back to the shore. 

“What was that?” he asks.

“It was my friend calling me. The noise was my phone.”

“Phone?” Linhardt questions, head turning to the side cutely.

Caspar holds it up. “It’s a device humans use to communicate with each other.”

Linhardt makes grabbing motions for the phone. Caspar hands it to him. It’s in one of those waterproof cases because he doesn’t trust himself, so he’s not worried about Linhardt getting it wet. Linhardt keeps touching the screen and turning the phone over in his hands. “Fascinating,” he mumbles. To Caspar’s surprise, he hands it back quickly. “It sounds as though you have somewhere to be.”

Caspar feels his heart get stuck in his throat. “Please don’t disappear for another 15 years,” he finds himself saying without his permission.

“You’re the one who disappeared,” Linhardt responds, which. Fair. 

“Can I see you again?” Caspar asks. 

Linhardt gives him a little smile at that. “I’ll be here with the rise of the sun. Meet me then.”

“You got it!” 

A flick of his tail, and Linhardt is gone. Caspar can’t believe it. After all these years, he found his savior. He learned his name! Linhardt came looking for _him_ , Caspar von Bergliez. Or, well. Caspar _thinks_ he was looking for him. And merpeople were real the whole time! His stupid family can kick rocks for never believing him. Caspar had started to believe everyone when they said he hallucinated everything. But Linhardt was real and he was pretty and curious and he had a _tail_. 

He can’t wait until tomorrow.

* * *

**_interlude_ **

“Brother,” a prim and tinkling voice calls behind him, “where have you been?”

Linhardt groans internally, but he’s thankful, at least, that it’s Flayn and not Ferdinand, perish the thought.

“I haven’t been anywhere,” he responds, swimming above his twin. She isn’t fooled, bright green eyes piercing right through him.

“I can tell that you have.”

“Oh? Have you developed telepathy in addition to healing magic?” Linhardt drawls.

She frowns so visibly he feels as if he can hear her face muscles moving. “Do not act smart with me, Linhardt. I know you were at the surface again.You need to be careful. You know how father feels about it.”

Linhardt sighs. “Yes, I am well aware. What I don’t know is why. They seem fine up there to me.” He realizes his mistake immediately.

Her eyes narrow and she swims in front of him. “Did you watch him again?”

He doesn’t attempt another lie. She may not be telepathic, but they _are_ twins, and there’s something to be said for that. 

“I...might have spoken to him, actually,” he answers.

Flayn can’t hide her delight, despite her prior concern. “Tell me everything!” 

He can’t help but indulge her. 

* * *

Linhardt and Caspar develop a routine after a couple of weeks. Linhardt cannot visit the surface everyday, as that would make his pod suspicious. So they agree to meet every other day. Caspar comes to the beach early, as the sun is rising. Occasionally he runs into Sylvain surfing or teaching lessons, but he and Linhardt typically meet near the decrepit dock near his house to stay out of sight. Linhardt is always there waiting for him, though sometimes he is on the verge of sleeping. They teach each other about their cultures and about their missing years. Caspar tells him about Ashe and about all his other friends he’s made since he moved to the beach. Linhardt tells him about his twin sister Flayn and their big brother Ferdinand. He tells him about his cousin Byleth, the warrior priestess, and her mate Dimitri and their new pup. It’s during one of these meetings by the dock in which Caspar really experiences Linhardt’s magic for the first time. 

“So how does the warrior priestess thing work exactly? Does she beat up bad guys with mermaid magic?” Caspar asks, moving farther down the dock. Linhardt looks up at him from under thick lashes and heavy lids and Caspar is hit for the hundredth time in his life with the thought: _pretty._

Linhardt lets out a soft laugh. “Well, in a way. She and her mate protect our pod from threats. Though lately that task has gone to Dimitri and our strongest hunters Dedue and Ingrid. The biggest threats are mainly from aggressive fish and sharks, but occasionally other tribes and a kraken here and there.”

“A kraken?” Caspar nearly yells, eyes wide. “You mean those are real?”

Linhardt furrows his brow. “Why wouldn’t they be?”

“Well,” Caspar begins, standing up and walking along the edge of the rickety dock, “they’ve always been a myth. Big sea monsters who come up out of the ocean and devour ships and sailors. Like in The Odyssey, or Pirates of the Caribbean.”

Linhardt looks a little lost, as he often does when Caspar references something too human. He looks like he’s about to ask Caspar to explain when he sees the planks on the rickety dock begin to give.

“Caspar, wait!” he shouts. He’s only swam this fast one other time in his life.

It all happens at once. The rotten plank gives way, Caspar begins to fall through it and Linhardt throws his arm out in front of him seemingly on instinct, a powerful gust of wind coming from his hand toward Caspar, pushing him safely off the dock and into the soft sand. Before Linhardt can ask if he’s okay, Caspar is pushing himself off the sand and dusting off his shorts. 

“What just happened? Did you do that?”

“I..think so. The dock was about to collapse under you and I just. Acted.”

“Cool! How did you do it?” 

“I don’t think there’s anything ‘cool’ about you nearly falling through a rotten dock, Caspar,” Linhardt sighs. 

“So was that magic?” Caspar asks, curious. 

“I suppose it was,” Linhardt responds, staring down at his right arm. He holds it out in front of him, looking very serious.

“You okay there, Lin?” Caspar asks, a little worried. 

“I think so,” he responds distractedly. “But the scales on my right arm are gone.”

Caspar’s eyes go wide, mouth hanging open in shock. He rushes forward into the water, wanting a closer look. He grabs Linhardt’s arm without thinking and marvels at the soft, smooth skin of it. It’s so... _human_. 

“This warrants some research. I wasn’t aware nereids could use such magic, much less lose their scales,” Linhardt trails off, looking at his arm in Caspar’s hand. Caspar quickly lets go, not wanting to make Linhardt uncomfortable. His cheeks are flushed, probably from exertion. Caspar wonders what he would look like with less scales, or without any scales at all.

His train of thought is interrupted when Linhardt softly clears his throat; Caspar realizes he’s been looking at him without seeing and can feel the way his cheeks flush.

“I should really go,” Linhardt says, sounding for all the world like that’s the last thing he wants to do.

Caspar hopes his disappointment doesn’t show on his face or in his voice when he responds “yea. Yea sure Lin, of course. I’ve probably kept you too long!” 

“You’re okay? The fall didn’t hurt you?” Linhardt questions.

Caspar brushes him off and reassures him he’s fine, that if Linhardt hadn’t saved him (again!) he’d be far worse for wear than a small fall into soft sand.

Linhardt looks convinced enough, and Caspar really doesn’t want to watch him go.

“I’ll be back at our usual day and time,” Linhardt says, eyes distant. “I have some research to do.”

Caspar nods, begins to say his goodbyes, but before he can Linhardt swims closer. He braces himself on his arms on either side of Caspar’s legs and surges forward, kissing Caspar on the cheek. 

“Bye, Caspar,” he says quietly into Caspar’s ear. He can feel himself shudder at his low voice and close proximity, but Linhardt is already swimming away, splashing him a little with his tail before he can react.

Caspar tries to suppress the urge to “whoop” and fails. Luckily, no one is around to see him. 

* * *

Linhardt swims faster paced than normal, but not so fast as to alarm anyone. The last thing he needs is to field questions from his father, or worse, his brother. He bypasses the main village of Zanado, heading towards the home of the one nereid in this pod who may be able to answer his questions without rousing the suspicion of anyone else. 

When he swims towards the cave-like entrance of her home, he sees her swimming leisurely on her back, her young pup nursing on one breast. She turns her head towards him, eyes as piercing as ever.

“Cousin,” he begins without preamble, “what do you know about becoming human? Losing your scales and gaining legs?”

“Dima,” Byleth calls without breaking eye contact, swimming upright. 

Her mate immediately comes swimming towards them from nearby. Linhardt is surprised he didn’t notice Dimitri before; he is usually more observant than this.

“Hello Linhardt,” he greets warmly before turning to his mate. Linhardt nods in return.

“Take Aneurin inside, won’t you? I think he’s eaten enough for now,” she says gently, removing the pup from her breast. He fusses only momentarily, calming once he’s in his father’s arms. Linhardt feels a rush of fondness and longing at the little family before him, but suppresses it.

Once Dimitri is out of earshot, Linhardt immediately opens his mouth to question her but she holds up a webbed hand to stop him before he can start. 

“I need to know what you have figured out already. Tell me everything. From the beginning.”

So he does.

* * *

Caspar isn't much of a worrier, but it's been nearly a week since he saw Linhardt and he is past the point of mild fretting. As always, he's at the beach every morning at their usual time. He goes to the rickety dock and imagines he can still see Linhardt's handprints in the sand from when he braced himself on the shore to kiss Caspar on the cheek. Caspar fears he's run him off, scared him, come on too strong. But Linhardt was the one who kissed _him_ , not the other way around. But what if it was a goodbye kiss? What if “research” was Linhardt’s way of telling him that he wasn’t going to come around anymore? His mind is filled with more of these “what-ifs” and every night his mind races so fast he can’t fall asleep. It’s on one of these nights that he hears a knock. He thinks it’s a figment of his imagination, a side effect of his sleep deprived mind. But then he hears it again, louder this time. Caspar has little self preservation and not much by the way of fear, so he hops out of bed and pulls the front door open without checking the peephole. He is sure, now, that he is hallucinating. Because Linhardt is standing on his doorstep. _Standing_ , with legs. And he is naked.

“Hello, Caspar,” he says mildly, like he’s not naked on Caspar’s doorstep on legs he didn’t have one week ago, wobbling like a baby deer.

Caspar faints.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehehehe i have been planning this cliffhanger for a while...please let me know your thoughts!! 
> 
> as you may have already noticed, i have changed my name on here but it's still the same old me!!
> 
> thank you everyone who left kudos, comments, etc. i really appreciate all the love so much
> 
> as for the pup, his name is welsh and is pronounced like an-eye-rin. i picked it because it means "truly golden" and bc blaiddyd is welsh and i wanted the dimileth baby to have a welsh name and it's my fic and i can do what i want tbh!!


End file.
